


Return

by Oparu



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-23
Updated: 2017-12-23
Packaged: 2019-02-18 20:36:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13108071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oparu/pseuds/Oparu
Summary: Regina loses Maleficent, then gets her back.





	Return

**Author's Note:**

> written for a hurt prompt of "don't you fucking let go." I was really pleased with how it turned out, so here it is. 
> 
> death magic, minor mentions of outlaw queen and stable queen

 

 

* * *

 

A sizzling, crackling ball of light splits the sky, like a firework straight out of hell. They can’t get out of the way, they’re too slow, it’s right there, and then Mal is instead. Her wings haloed in the strange green light of the curse. She roars in pain and Regina’s stomach sinks, turning to a knot of ice.

Maybe she’ll be all right, it hit her in dragon form and that body’s remarkably resilient, but Mal’s already starting to shift back, melting into grey mist then toppling down, her hair falling loose and golden. 

She runs, grabbing her while Snow and Davi help, easing her down. Fine black lines creep across her face, growing from the back of her neck, under her hair. Mal smells like ash and brimstone, and there’s no blood. If she’s dying, there should be blood, and yet there’s nothing. Just the too-soft, struggle of Mal’s breathing and the voices around her that mean nothing. 

“What was it?”

“Why did she get in the way?”

“Who was that?”

All of them talk at once, their voices falling like cold rain. The black lines radiate outward, steadily growing.

“Hang on.” She doesn’t even know what it is, how can she fight it? How can she demand Mal stay with her, stay awake? “Emma?”

“I don’t know what it is, I don’t know if I can heal it, maybe I can slow it down--” Emma’s magic rushes outward, white and warm, but it fizzles when it hits the black.

“Go to Rumple’s shop, get him, get Belle, go!”

“Regina?”

“I don’t know what this is, I’ve never seen this kind of curse,” her voice trembles like she’s falling apart like the woman in her arms, and her eyes sting before she even knew she was crying. “I can’t lose her.”

“You won’t,” Emma promises but it’s all happening so fast, how can Emma know? 

“Mal, Mal wake up, look at me!” 

Her eyes open as if cracking ice, and something black oozes from the corner of her left, like ink where the webs have already touched her. “It’s too early.”

“No, no, stay awake.”

“You always set the alarm too early.” Mal’s eyes swim but she manages to focus, finally. She winces. “Death curse. Nasty stuff.”

“How do I stop it?” 

Mal doesn’t answer, and her eyes start to close again.

“No, Mal, dammit.” Her tears fall free onto Mal’s face, running across her skin to the pavement. “Hang on, we can fix this.”

Emma’s magic rushes out again, running all over Mal’s skin, covering her in white and maybe it helps, because Mal manages to open her eyes again.

“I’m sorry.”

“No, no! Don’t apologize, don’t let go, dammit, Maleficent, don’t you fucking dare let go.” 

Her heart’s still beating, thudding gently, slowing. Maybe if she takes it out, she can stop the curse, like with Marian. Regina plunges her hand into Mal’s chest, and it stings, like too hot bathwater. She wraps her fingers around Mal’s heart and tugs, ripping it from her chest. 

It burns, like an ember, red-orange, but mercifully free of the black threads, whatever they are. 

Mal meets her eyes, and smiles. She opens her mouth, as if to speak, then starts to crumble, turning to ash like burnt wood. She collapses into dust in Regina’s lap while her heart beats.

Her tears fall into ash, making dark drops of mud while Emma tries to get her to breathe. 

It’ll be okay.

How can it be? She cradles Maleficent’s heart to her chest because she needs that heart to keep beating. She’s lost too much, said goodbye to too many loves. 

Emma keeps an arm around her, then Snow touches her face, makes her wipe her eyes, hugs her tight when Regina’s sobbed so much she can’t breath. She won’t let go of the heart. She can’t. 

She’s not fucking letting go.

* * *

 

 

Belle finds it, in a book, obscure, so old its hand-sewn and the pages sound like dead leaves when they turn. 

Dragons are born of fire, and in fire they can be reborn.

Fire, and blood. 

Henry rubs her back and promises it’ll be all right. “You can do it, Mom.”

The last time they brought her back, Cruella and Ursula used dark magic, the blood of those who wronged her, but this time, Regina wants to do it right. So they use her blood, and Lily’s, Henry’s, and when the little pile of ash doesn’t stir around that flaming heart, Emma steps forward and nicks her hand, then Snow, David, Killian, Granny, Belle, even Rumplestilskin himself: each drop of red makes the flame burn higher.

 _Hotter_.

Then it catches. Fire roars up and takes Regina’s hope with it, rising in smoke and flame until she’s back, standing there in the same suit she died in.

Regina runs at her, throwing herself in her arms and she’s realm and warm and her heart beats slow and steady back in her chest. 

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t leave me like that.”

Mal smiles, tears running down her face. She touches Regina’s chin. “I knew you’d bring me back.”

“We all did,” Henry adds, waving from behind. 

“You all did?”

“The blood of those who love you,” Belle explains. “It’s a modern twist on that resurrection spell. A nice one, I don’t think it’ll work on anyone who’s not a dragon, but as long as someone loves you here it’s safe to say, we can bring you back.”

Emma passes around bandaids and grins, patting Mal’s shoulder. “Don’t do it often though, it’s intense.”

Lily’s chin trembles and she can’t even look at her mothers, but she lets them pull her in. She doesn’t cry, she was too lost for that, but she allows herself to be held. 

Henry hugs them both so tight that Regina loses her breath again. 

“Don’t leave us,” Regina whispers again. “Even if you are trying to save us.”

“I thought ressurecting me would be easier than ressurecting all of you.”

Regina wants to hit her, or kiss her. Or both.

She starts with a kiss. 


End file.
